The Eternal Darkness by Steven A. Tolle

faced two to three times that amount.  He needed assistance soon, or his defenses would be overcome.
    Quickly surveying the rest of the stands, he came to halt and grabbed Moshanna as he started to continue forward.  “Sharin is with the queen, so she is safe for now,” he stated grimly.  He could see the concern and fear written on the man’s dark face, but Moshanna eventually nodded.  He was a soldier after all and could see their dilemma.  The two of them, skilled as they were, could not hope to fight their way to the queen against so many.  Moshanna looked the question to Dominic.
    “There,” Dominic said, pointing with his sword at a group of four soldiers fighting against a slightly larger group of attackers.  There were several small pockets of soldiers battling in the stands.  “We need to gather as many soldiers as we can, and then make the assault on those besieging the queen.  If we can gather a dozen or more, we might be able to break through.”
    “I agree,” Moshanna said quickly.
    They started for the soldiers, who were standing shoulder to shoulder in a small semi-circle.  The steps of the arena made fighting difficult, but the soldiers retained the elevation on their attackers.  Dominic and Moshanna came up behind the attackers and killed several before their foes realized their danger and tried to turn and fight.  Caught between the soldiers and two skilled swordsmen, the assailants found that they were exposed no matter which way they turned.  The soldiers took advantage of the sudden disarray and drove into the attackers.  The fighting was brutal, but short, as they finished off the remaining enemies.
    “Follow us,” Dominic said as he led them towards another group of soldiers.
    They rapidly overwhelmed the next group of attackers and gathered the soldiers.  They continued clearing the small pockets of fighting as they moved towards the queen’s position, swelling their ranks.
    Dominic kept a watchful eye on the fighting at the queen’s box. With his line losing soldiers despite Halana’s best efforts, Farrious had joined the combat directly.  He had placed himself near the center of his line, their enemies hesitant to push too hard, as his use of his warhammer had created a pile of bodies around him.  Despite his heroic efforts, his men were slowly losing ground.  Dominic determined that they had to launch an attack now to relieve the pressure or there would be no one left to rescue.  He had ten soldiers plus Moshanna at his command.
    “Moshanna, take half the men higher and drive into the enemy near the end of Farrious’ line,” he called out.  “I will take the rest lower to attack upward and attempt to squeeze them between us.  If we succeed, we will join up with Farrious.  Once the queen is secured, we can push against the rest.”
    Moshanna nodded, gathered his soldiers and climbed higher on the arena steps.  “For Aletonia and the queen!” he called out as he charged forward.  His men crashed into their foes, their swords slashing and stabbing.  The attack sent the closest of the demons’ followers reeling back, like ripples on a pond.  At the apex of that ripple was Moshanna, his face a mask and his sword flashing as he moved, carving into the enemy.
    “Stay together and watch each other’s backs,” Dominic said to the soldiers with him as they moved forward.  “I will deal with any demons.”  The men, their faces grim, nodded as he turned and led them into the mass of attackers.
    “Lord Demonhunter!” his men called out as they slammed into the milling enemy.  The soldiers were disciplined as they fought, acting as a single unit, felling nearby foes.
    Dominic slid away slightly from his men, his sword and dagger moving, as he searched for any nearby demons while fighting their followers.  The steps were tricky to fight on, the stone slick with blood, their narrowness not allowing great footing.  The human followers turned to face him, their